Session
Organizer 1: Daniela Schnidrig, Global Partners Digital
Organizer 2: Enrico Calandro, Research ICT Africa
Speaker 1: Anri van der Spuy, Civil Society, African Group
Speaker 2: Kenneth Adu-Amanfoh, Government, African Group
Speaker 3: Matthew Shears, Civil Society, Western European and Others Group (WEOG)
Speaker 4: Mallory Knodel, Civil Society, Western European and Others Group (WEOG)
Enrico Calandro, Civil Society, African Group
Daniela Schnidrig, Civil Society, Latin American and Caribbean Group (GRULAC)
Daniela Schnidrig, Civil Society, Latin American and Caribbean Group (GRULAC)
Round Table - U-shape - 60 Min
The round table's primary policy question is to explore what policy research tools do policy makers have to go beyond the normative and technical aspects of cybersecurity and data protection by promoting a better understanding of Internet users' needs and perceptions of their privacy, safety and security online. The aim is to provide policymakers and other practitioners with practical guidance on how to include a human perspective to internet safety and security, in order to support the development of an Internet that can foster economic growth while reducing cyber-risks and harms, and sustainable development on the African continent and beyond.
In order to answer to this main question, the secondary questions are:
Do policy-makers take into account the human-rights dimension of data protection and cybersecurity when they develop policy and regulatory frameworks related to security, safety, stability and resilience?
What are the developmental challenges related to cybersecurity and data protection in Africa?
Do policymakers in Africa have enough capacity to investigate human issues related to security, safety, stability and resilience? What are the resources and tools available to build such capacity?
How can we measure and quantify potential progress to improving security, safety, stability and resilience in cyberspace to achieve the SDGs?
What societal, political, economic and capacity structures would need to be in place to effectively include a human-centric perspective to cyber-policy development?
How can we identify and quantify potential harms caused by cyber-threats and cyber-crime?
What are the existing norms that can bring about a human-centric approach, how practical are they and how can they be implemented by policymakers?
If the Internet is a “trust” technology, people’s views change significantly as they become more frequent users - how to account for this in long-term planning?
GOAL 1: No Poverty
GOAL 3: Good Health and Well-Being
GOAL 5: Gender Equality
GOAL 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth
GOAL 9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure
GOAL 10: Reduced Inequalities
GOAL 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions
GOAL 17: Partnerships for the Goals
Description: During the roundtable, the notion of a human-centric approach to cyberpolicy will be untangled. To distinguish between a traditional, normative, and technical approach to cyberpolicy, the panelists will be invited to discuss methods and approaches to bring in a people-centred perspective in the policymaking process.
The debate has the following intended agenda:
Introduction to the topic of a human-centric approach to cyberpolicy, and a brief introduction of the discussants;
Presentation of #AfterAccess data pertaining to African users awareness on privacy, and safety and security online;
Debate on research findings moderated by the RIA Principal Investigator on cybersecurity;
Open microphone for online and offline interventions and questions from the public;
Answers from the discussion;
Wrap-up and takeaways.
Expected Outcomes: Research ICT Africa is currently conducting research on this topic through its Africa Digital Policy Project (ADPP), which focuses specifically on cyber policy challenges for Sub-Saharan Africa. The intended outcomes of this workshop proposal are related to one of the ADPP aims which is to provide African stakeholders with the information and analysis required to develop innovative and appropriate cyber policies better able to address the challenges of sustainable development on the continent. The workshop is expected to facilitate evidence-based and informed cyber policymaking for supporting the development of an Internet that is free (based on and supportive of human rights), trusted (based on sound cybersecurity measures), and innovative (based on enabling policy environments).
The moderators (offline and online) supported by the round table organisers, will involve discussants and the public in the debate, and will facilitate the discussion on the topic of the round table. Specifically, in order to optimise the time and to assure fair participation of both online and offline participants, the debate will unfold in the following way:
Suggested Agenda (60 minutes):
a. Opening: presentation of the round table and policy questions (5 minutes)
b. Panelist remarks (5 minutes each: 25 minute in total)
c. Discussion (15 minutes), including comments and questions from remote participants
d. Closing remarks from panelists (2 minutes each: 10 minutes in total)
e. Wrap-up (5 minutes)
Relevance to Theme: Country’s approach to cybersecurity is a critical enabler for the achievement of the SDGs, in particular for #16 “[p]romot[ing] peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provid[ing] access to justice for all and build[ing] effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels”.
Other goals relating to the human-side of cybersecurity are to ensure participation in economic processes and build trust in Internet-based services (SDG #1), to provide access to health services, which protect individuals’ personal information and guarantees the resilience of health services (SDG #3), to protect vulnerable groups (in particular women) against any online based discrimination and to foster their inclusion (SDG #5), and to give everyone access to Internet-based education and the adequate skill set, as well as raising the awareness of cyber risks (SDG #9).
Relevance to Internet Governance: Internet governance is a multistakeholder forum which brings different perspectives relating to specific issues affecting the development of the Internet. Therefore, the IGF is the right venue for discussing the issue of the human-side on cybersecurity, because the multistakeholder approach to the theme allows different perspectives to be brought into the discussion, beyond the technical and normative approach which normally underlines cyber policy development.
As recommended by the MAG, the organising committee of the Round table will train an online moderator who will assume responsibility for giving online attendees a separate queue and microphone, which will rotate equally with the microphone in the room. The on-site moderator of the round table will keep the online participation session open and will be in close communication with the workshop’s trained online moderator to share the online questions and interventions in the on-site room. The trained online moderator will collect opinions, questions and comments during the roundtable and the most relevant contributions to the discussion will be shared among the participants to the roundtable.
Proposed Additional Tools: YES through Twitter and collaborative editing on pads (https://pads.riseup.net)